Steve Buscemi has built a career out of portraying some of the most unique and unforgettable characters in recent cinema. Having developed a sizeable cult following for his acting, the 48-year-old Brooklyn, New York native has diversified into producing, directing and screenwriting.His latest venture, the poignant Lonesome Jim, stars Casey Affleck as Jim, a 27-year-old who begrudgingly returns to his hometown in rural Indiana after failing to make it on his own in New York. Upon deciding to move back in with his parents, Jim has to deal with crippling family obligations, involving his doting but overbearing mother (Mary Kay Place), a distant father (Seymour Cassel), and a depressed older brother (Kevin Corrigan). His only hope springs from his developing relationship with a local nurse (Liv Tyler) and her young son.
Buscemi says that he was attracted to the script, written by first-time screenwriter James C. Strouse, because of the characters. “I liked the fact that everyone in this family were in their own worlds, and it’s hard for them to communicate. I also really liked the humor in it. The comedy came from these dark places. I was tempted to call it a comedy about depression, but I don’t think they would have let me get away with that.”
Much of the cast came together as a result of friendships and working relationships that Buscemi had developed previously, which was serendipitous, considering that the former stand-up comedian managed to get everyone that he wanted for the film.
“Casey was involved very early on. Liv Tyler was on a very short list of people that we thought of, and we got the script to her very quickly because I know her, and Casey knows her. She said, ‘Yes,’ immediately, and that was it. I did not know Mary Kay Place. I’ve loved her work for years, so when my wife suggested her name, I thought she’d be perfect. I just had to offer her the part and, luckily, she accepted. And, I’ve worked with Mark Boone Junior, Kevin Corrigan and Seymour Cassel, so it was nice to bring in people whose work I know so well, and who are friends, because I knew they would really deliver.”
The son of a New York City Sanitation Department worker, Buscemi dropped out of Nassau Community College after a semester as a liberal arts major, and heeded the advice of his father to utilize settlement money from a childhood accident to take acting lessons with John Strasberg at the Lee Strasberg Institute. His father also urged the former athlete to take the Civil Service exam for the New York City Fire Department. Waiting for his name to come up on the list, the aspiring actor filled his time with driving an ice cream truck and working as a furniture mover to make ends meet.
Once he decided to focus primarily on acting, Buscemi worked steadily, achieving a career milestone in 1992, gaining attention as Mr. Pink, a would-be diamond thief who refuses to tip waitresses in Quentin Tarantino’s Reservoir Dogs, and since becoming one of the industry’s most reliable and prolific actors.
“As an actor, I think I’ve played lots of different types of roles,” says Buscemi, when talking about his varied resume. “I don’t necessarily gravitate toward anything, except characters that have a lot going on, or that are complicated, or that involve writers or directors that I like. With directing, I can afford to be a little choosier because I don’t make my living directing. But, I’ve always liked character-driven films. Those are the films that I like to act in, and those are the films that I’d like to be involved with, as a director.”
Born to an Irish-American mother and an Italian-American Korean War vet father, Buscemi was able to personally identify with Jim. “He’s a guy that tried to do his thing in New York. I think anybody who moves to New York to try and be an actor, a musician, a writer, what have you, can relate to that experience, and feeling overwhelmed by it. In my case, I was lucky because my parents only lived half an hour away, in Long Island. So, I give a lot of credit to anyone who comes from the mid-West, like Indiana, because New York can be a really intimidating place.”
With 10 years having passed since his full-length feature film directorial debut Trees Lounge, which he also wrote and starred in, alongside Chloe Sevigny, Samuel L. Jackson and Anthony LaPaglia, Buscemi has had the time to get some more directing experience under his belt.
“I think the more I direct, the more comfortable I get doing it. I don’t know if I’m getting better at it, but I certainly feel more at ease. I don’t even know if that’s the right word, but it’s less intimidating and mysterious.”
One medium he has gained this experience in is television, directing episodes of Oz, Homicide: Life on the Street and The Sopranos, which he also spent a season on, working as an actor. “Even before I was on the show, I had directed a couple of episodes. I guess, having acted on the show for a season, you do feel like you’re more a part of the family. When I first did it, I definitely felt like an outsider. The director is the outsider, especially when you’re a new director. They have directors there that usually direct a few episodes a year, so I feel fortunate that I’ve gotten to do at least one a year, since the third season. I always love working on that show, no matter if it’s directing or acting. I just love working with Jimmy Gandolfini.”
The difference between directing a hit show like The Sopranos and a small film like Lonesome Jim is the crowd that gathers during filming. “There’s less people gawking, when you film in Indiana,” says Buscemi, laughing. “Whenever Jimmy Gandolfini is on the street, you get a crowd. But, they are really supportive. I think Liv got recognized, but the rest of the cast pretty much went by relatively unnoticed. They were just excited that we were making a film in their hometown, and we got a lot of support.”
Along with upcoming acting projects, such as Delirious, Monster House and the highly anticipated live-action Charlotte’s Web, Buscemi is currently getting together his next directorial project. “We lost the financing on it twice, but it’s coming together now. It’s a remake of a film that the Dutch filmmaker Theo Van Gogh made, called Interview, that he wanted to remake as an American film. When he was, unfortunately, killed, a little over a year ago, his Dutch producing partner wanted to honor that wish.”
